Path-planning for elastically constrained space manipulator systems

Current design proposals for space manipulator systems suggest the use of a general-purpose dexterous arm attached to the end of a long flexible arm to perform a variety of tasks. The dynamic interaction between the components of such systems presents a number of dynamic and control problems. The motion of the small manipulator can excite difficult-to-control vibrations of the large manipulator. A technique called the coupling map is presented for planning motions of elastically constrained space manipulator systems that result in relatively low residual vibrations to their supporting structures. A prototype was designed in some detail as a baseline for simulation and evaluation of the algorithms developed